The British Athletics’ Futures Academy Programme – supported by Nike – exceeded expectations across both its Olympic and Paralympic cohorts in 2021.

On the Olympic programme, 22 athletes from a total of 38 were selected to represent Great Britain and Northern Ireland (GB & NI), 76% achieved age and stage development benchmarks, and 13 athletes achieved senior GB & NI performance standards.

Nine medals were achieved by Futures athletes in individual events and relays at the European Indoor Championships, European U23 Championships and European U20 Championships, while 11 athletes made their senior GB & NI debuts. Three athletes, including Olympic 800m silver medallist Keely Hodgkinson (coached by Trevor Painter), were selected to represent Team GB at the Olympic Games in Tokyo.

On the Paralympic programme, nine athletes were selected to represent ParalympicsGB at the Tokyo Games including T20 1500m gold medallist Owen Miller (Steve Doig). 22 athletes from a total of 24 achieved personal bests, 13 made GB & NI teams – 12 making their senior debuts –and ten athletes won medals at the World Para Athletics European Championships.

The Futures Academy Programme is focused on supporting athletes and coaches who have demonstrated the potential to succeed at future Olympic and Paralympic Games. Through a series of camps, experience and dedicated Futures Programme staff, it provides the opportunities for them to develop the skills and abilities required for international success and forms part of the pathway towards the WCP.

Dan Wagner, British Athletics Performance Pathway Manager – Olympic, said: “We’re delighted with the progress of our Futures athletes and their coaches over the last four years. While it’s easy to focus on the incredible achievements of our Olympic and Paralympic medallists, we’re equally as proud of the athletes who have developed key areas of their hollistic development plan, recorded personal bests or made British teams.”

Sarah Benson, British Athletics Performance Pathway Manager – Paralympic, said: “Futures is a key programme on the talent pathway, and it’s important for the athletes and their coaches that the education, sports science and technical support caters for their own specific stage of development. Satisfaction ratings across both programmes are exceptionally high, which tells us that we continue to offer a talent development environment that works for our athletes and their coaches, and is providing them with an opportunity to grow and learn in a safe, but challenging and inspiring setting.”

To follow the progress of British Athletics’ Futures Academy Programme athletes, check out UKA Futures (ukafutures) on Instagram.